The Case of the Wandering TV

Hey, Friends! We've been working hard over here on a big living room project! I can't wait to show it to you, but I feel like I should explain it a bit first. Otherwise, you may be left wondering why we tackled this project and think we just love to have a living room full of sawdust. Ha! So, go get a cup of coffee and let's talk about our wandering TV!

When we first moved into this house, we purchased this cute TV stand and put our TV angled in the corner so it didn't block the window. Between the stairs and the low windows in our living room, furniture arranging was difficult and this seemed like the best place for the TV. Here's how it looked back before we started our living room redo. Read all of our living room posts here.

Jeremy had mentioned moving the TV to the mantle, but I thought he was crazy considering we had our TV above the fireplace in our last home (in a cutout for boxier TVs) and I hated it. I mentioned putting the TV in a built in next to the fireplace and angling it toward the couch, but he couldn't envision it and thought I was crazy. So, we both thought the other was crazy and the TV happily remained angled in the corner. Ha!

When we repainted last year, Jeremy started lobbying for the TV above the fireplace again. I really wasn't crazy about it, but since everything was moved out and unplugged anyway, I let him put it on the mantle to try it out. I wasn't head over heels, but I didn't hate it as much as I thought I would because it opened up a lot of space in the living room. We came to a compromise and agreed to leave it on the mantle if we did two things-- a.) add planking to pretty it up and ground it in the space and b.) get it wired so there would be no more cords dangling off the mantle.

 See how lost the TV looked without planking?

And don't even get me started on the cord mess! Please excuse the wonky wall coloring in those pictures!

We put off the wiring project because we needed to hire that out and we were slammed with multiple traveling expenses last year. But, Jeremy did add the planking which we love!

Don't be fooled, I rolled up the cords for this picture. You can spy some of the cord mess under the chair! 

Fast forward to this spring and we were ready to hire an electrician to add a recessed outlet above the fireplace and wire in our units. After getting a couple identical quotes, we were really discouraged because the cost was triple what we planned! Because we needed to go over and drill through several studs, the electrical work was not only triple, but there would be a lot of drywall damage to be repaired. Ugg. 

You still with me? Need a coffee refill? Don't worry, now's where the story gets good. ;)

I was fine to wait for us to save the extra money, but after living with the TV up on the mantle for a year, Jeremy wanted to revisit my built in plan. Are you hearing the angels singing?! I thoroughly explained what I was thinking (I even drew pictures!) and researched the exact hardware needed to make it happen...and Jeremy jumped ship on his plan and was totally on board with mine! Holla! I asked him about 500 more times if he was sure sure he wanted to move the TV and assured him I was fine with leaving it, but he was sure. 

What changed his mind? My plan was a couple hundred dollars cheaper which was a big deal. And, my plan would allow him to sit in the chair and actually be able to see the words on the TV when he plays video games. Right now, he has to stand in front of the TV to be able to read anything. Gaming is his hobby and getting to be comfy while doing it was a big deal! :)

So, ready to see what my plan was?! Keep in mind, we're in the middle of building it, so it looks like a hot mess at the moment! 

We designed a built in that would house our TV, have a closed cabinet for the components and storage, and a bookshelf on top for more storage (and pretty stuff, duh! Ha)! Get ready for some mediocre phone progress pictures! ;)

The TV will go in the large spot in the middle sort of like in the picture below. We purchased a full motion bracket that we will use to mount the TV to the back of the cabinet. It will look like this most of the time, minus the stand. But, if we are watching TV on the long side of the couch, we will be able to pull the TV out and swivel it toward the couch. 

In case anyone is wondering, we built the TV shelf to accommodate a larger TV for when we eventually upgrade. Thankfully, the new TVs are slimmer and have much thinner frames, so while the screen will be bigger, the TV won't actually take up much more space. 

Jeremy added some smart storage features like these two hidden compartments for cords. Lift out the shelf and all of the power strips are hiding underneath! 

So far, here's what has been done: 

-We hired an electrician to move the light switches over and combine them into one double switch plate instead of two single switch plates. 

-Jeremy built the cabinet and bookshelf and installed it over the holiday weekend. It was hours of labor! He did a fabulous job!

-I filled all the nail holes and sanded the entire thing down. 

-I applied edge banding to cover the exposed plywood edges. 

We still need to: 

-Add crown moulding, baseboards, and trim down the sides

-Build the other cabinet door and install them

-Paint! I've already started painting, but it's definitely going to take me a few days!

-Finish patching/painting the drywall where the switches were moved

We're planning to finish the construction phase this weekend, then you'll find me painting all next week! ;) 

Oh, and remember these fabulous Anthropologie knobs I posted on Instagram? They are for the cabinet doors and I couldn't be more stoked about them, especially since they were only $2.36 each! 

Whew, you made it through this post! You deserve a cookie! I'll be back soon to show you the finished product! Happy Weekend!